Media captionChristchurch was once put into lockdown as occasions spread out

New Zealand is in mourning after 49 folks had been killed at two mosques within the nation’s deadliest-ever capturing.

PM Jacinda Ardern described Friday’s capturing within the town of Christchurch as one in all New Zealand’s “darkest days”.

Plant life had been left out of doors mosques around the nation as anxious households look ahead to information of lacking family members.

A gunman believed to be a white supremacist live-streamed the rampage. A person in his past due 20s has been arrested and is because of seem in court docket.

Two different individuals are in custody. No names had been made public.

A complete of 48 folks had been wounded within the shootings. The identities of the lifeless and wounded have now not been launched.

Bangladesh, India and Indonesia all say a few of their voters had been killed within the capturing and others are unaccounted for.

Media playback is unsupported to your software

Media captionJacinda Ardern: “It will simplest be described as a terrorist assault”

Safety stays tight throughout Christchurch. All mosques in New Zealand had been closed.

How occasions spread out

The primary record of an assault got here from the Al Noor mosque in central Christchurch all the way through Friday prayers at 13:40 (00:40 GMT).

A gunman drove to the entrance door, entered and fired on worshippers for approximately 5 mins.

The gunman, who live-streamed the assault from a head-mounted digital camera, mentioned he was once a 28-year-old Australian known as Brenton Tarrant. The pictures confirmed him capturing at males, ladies and kids.

A survivor advised the New Zealand Usher in newspaper how he escaped via a window.

Moroccan-born Nour Tavis mentioned he was once within the entrance row when the capturing began.

“Other people had been working and unexpectedly you noticed them fall,” he mentioned. He noticed any person spoil a window. “I adopted… it was once the most secure position to get out.”

Considered one of his pals misplaced his spouse, he advised the newspaper.

“When she heard the noise she sought after to move and ensure her husband was once protected,” he mentioned. “She were given the bullet, her husband were given away.”

Social media’s position in Christchurch assault

UK mosque safety below evaluation

Symbol copyrightAFP

Symbol caption
Plant life had been positioned at a mosque within the capital, Wellington, and others round New Zealand

The gunman is then mentioned to have pushed about 5km (3 miles) to any other mosque within the suburb of Linwood the place the second one capturing took place.

One witness described how some of the worshippers had controlled to disarm the person, who ran to a ready automobile out of doors.

Media playback is unsupported to your software

Media captionEyewitness: “My arms had been shaking so laborious”

It’s not transparent the place the arrests had been made.

Police say they recovered firearms from each mosques, and explosive units had been present in a automobile belonging to some of the suspects.

Media playback is unsupported to your software

Media captionFootage on social media display an arrest being made after the New Zealand mosque shootings

In step with the newest census figures, Muslims make up about 1.1% of New Zealand’s inhabitants of four.25 million.

Numbers rose sharply as New Zealand took in refugees from more than a few war-torn international locations because the 1990s.

The principle suspect

Social media accounts within the title of Brenton Tarrant had been used to publish a long, racist file by which the writer known the mosques that had been later attacked.

The person says he started making plans an assault after visiting Europe in 2017 and being angered by means of occasions there.

The file is named “The Nice Alternative” – a word that originated in France and has turn into a rallying cry for Eu anti-immigration extremists.

Even if New Zealand police mentioned that they had charged a person in his past due 20s with homicide, they didn’t determine him.

Cricket group escapes assault

The assault came about as gamers from the visiting Bangladesh nationwide cricket group had been on their strategy to pray at Al Noor mosque.

They had been “mins” from being inside of, group supervisor Khaled Mashud advised the BBC.

Bangladesh was once because of play New Zealand on Saturday however the fit has been cancelled.

He added that the group had been “protected and sound” at their resort however would go back and forth house “within the coming days”.

“Avid gamers had been crying within the bus, all of them had been mentally affected,” the previous wicketkeeper mentioned.

International response

“It’s transparent that it will now simplest be described as a terrorist assault,” High Minister Ardern advised newshounds.

In a tweet, she mentioned: “What has came about in Christchurch is an bizarre act of unparalleled violence. It has no position in New Zealand. Lots of the ones affected might be contributors of our migrant communities – New Zealand is their house – they’re us.”

US President Donald Trump presented his “warmest sympathy and absolute best needs” to New Zealand. “The United States stands by means of New Zealand for anything else we will be able to do. God bless all!” he wrote.

UK High Minister Theresa Would possibly presented her “private condolences to the folks of New Zealand”.

The Queen mentioned she was once “deeply saddened by means of the appalling occasions in Christchurch nowadays. Prince Philip and I ship our condolences”.

Pope Francis presented his “heartfelt team spirit” and was once “deeply saddened to be informed of the damage and lack of existence brought about by means of the mindless acts of violence”, Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin mentioned in a telegram.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel mentioned she mourned “with New Zealanders for his or her fellow voters who had been attacked and murdered out of racist hatred whilst peacefully praying of their mosques”.

And French President Emmanuel Macron known as it an “odious assault” and mentioned France stood “towards any type of extremism”.

Are you within the house? Did you witness the assaults? Whether it is protected to take action please get involved by means of emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.united kingdom.

Please come with a touch quantity in case you are keen to talk to a BBC journalist. You’ll be able to additionally touch us within the following techniques: